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Gemstones of Afganistan
Gemstones of Afganistan
Afghanistan
Gemstones of Afghanistan
Afghanistan and gemstones have been inextricably linked for
6500 years and the country remains rich in precious and semiprecious gemstone deposits (Figure 1). Lapis lazuli, mined in the
Hindu Kush since the Neolithic Period, was transported along
the ancient trade routes to Mesopotamia, Ur, Egypt and India.
Precious gems including emeralds, ruby and sapphires (Figure 2)
are mined in Afghanistan, and semi-precious lapis lazuli,
tourmaline, aquamarine, kunzite, topaz, garnets, fluorite and
varieties of quartz are also worked. Afghanistan is also a source of
good quality mineral specimens sought by collectors.
TAJIKISTAN
UZBEKISTAN
TURKMENISTAN
Sary-Sang
Panjshir Valley
Kabul
Herat
Jegdalek
Lapis Lazuli
Emerald
IRAN
Ruby
Kunzite
Tourmaline
Other
Kandahar
PAKISTAN
Figure 4. This 32.32 carat ruby pendant is featured in the Gems and Gemology Quarterly Journal (Ruby and Sapphires from Jegdalek
Afghanistan Summer 2000, p.111). The ruby is from Jegdalek, Afghanistan. Gary Bowersox
Figure 5. Ruby in marble, Jegdalek. Inset: Ruby rough from the mine.
Lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli from Badakhshan in the north of the country is
still regarded as the worlds premier source in terms of quantity
and quality. Its name is derived from the Latin lapis, meaning
stone and the Persian lazhward meaning blue. It is used to
make beads, boxes and other decorative articles, is often carved
into figurines and is popular for mens jewellery.
Lapis lazuli rock is composed of the feldspathoid minerals
lazurite, hauyne, nosean and sodalite, with other minerals
including calcite and pyrite and lesser amounts of diopside,
amphibole, feldspar, mica and other silicates.
Lapis is mined in an area known as the Blue Mountain on
the right bank of the Kokcha River in Badakhshan where it
occurs as skarn lenses 14 m thick in marble. There were
formerly seven mines extracting lapis lazuli but today there
is only one, the Sary-Sang deposit (Figure 6). The mine lies
at an elevation of around 3500 m where, on account of
low winter temperatures, it is worked only between
June and September. Accurate production figures
are not available but an estimate is 9000 kg
per year. A speculative estimate of the
reserves is 1300 tonnes.
Semi-precious gems from Nuristan
Nuristan is a region on the eastern
side of Afghanistan bordering
Pakistan and with high
mountains incised by
numerous steep-sided
valleys. The region is
References
BOWERSOX, G W. 1985. A status report on gemstones from
Afghanistan. Gems and Gemology, Vol. 21 192204.
BOWERSOX, G W. et al. 1991. Emeralds of the Panjshir Valley,
Afghanistan. Gems and Gemology, Vol. 27 2639.
BOWERSOX, G W. and CHAMBERLIN, B E. 1995. Gemstones of
Afghanistan. (Geoscience Press) 1995.
BOWERSOX, G W. et al. 2000. Ruby and sapphire from
Jegdalek, Afghanistan. Gems and Gemology, Vol. 36, 110126.
QUINN E P. and LAURS B M. 2004. Sapphires from
Afghanistan and Pakistan. Gems and Gemology, Vol. 40.
http://www.gia.edu/gemsandgemology/18578/22210/2278/b
ack_issue_article_detail.cfm
UNDP, 2005. Chapter VIII. Precious and semi-precious
stones, in Market sector assessments: SME development/
UNDP; prepared by Altai Consulting. Kabul.
WORLD BANK. 2004. Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan.
Mining as a source of growth.
Gary Bowersox
Figure 8. A 375 carat Afghan aquamarine named Sea Spray, sculptured by
Bart Curren. Valued at $52,300.
Contact details
For further information please contact:
Secretariat for the Ministry of Mines,
Kabul,Afghanistan
Tel: +93 (0) 70 269 772/70 085 364
e-mail: MMIAFG@hotmail.com or MMIAFG@gmail.com
Afghanistan Project Manager, British Geological Survey,
Kingsley Dunham Centre, Keyworth, Nottingham
NG12 5GG United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 115 936 3100
e-mail: afghanistan@bgs.ac.uk
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